A Monumental Reunion
by Jayne Leigh
Summary: Studio 60 Fic Matt had always been vague about his family but when his older brother visits everything and more comes out. chapter 6
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! I've started a new fic! I hope you like it! Please review! Also, watching Studio 60 tonight!!! **

**Enjoy!!!**

**A Monumental Reunion **

Danny was sat on the couch in Matt's office, sipping coffee as he watched his friend typing on his keyboard. He wasn't fooled by Matt's calm appearance, he knew any minute Matt would get frustrated and give up on the Paris Hilton sketch he was working on. It was Friday and Matt was having trouble writing for the last 5 minutes of the show. Danny wasn't worried though, because this was what normally happened and Matt always found something.

"Do you know what?" Matt said, breaking the silence.

"What?"

"This really sucks." He stated but hadn't stopped typing.

"Why are you still writing then?"

"I can't stop."

"Can you fix it?" Danny questioned.

"No." Matt sighed, falling back into his chair and rubbing his eyes. "God, why can't I do this?!"

"Relax a little..."

"Danny, the dress is in 2 hours, I can't relax!"

"Come on, let's go for a walk."

"A walk?!"

"Yeah, Andy, Lucy and Darius are working with a few of the cast...Lets go and see if they've come up with anything."

Matt just sighed loudly but didn't move from his chair.

"Look, you can sulk and get stressed out here or you can do the right thing and come with me." Danny stood up.

"The right thing?" Matt questioned but got up and followed Danny to the door, not waiting for an answer.

"I'm always right, remember." Danny commented as they left the office.

Matt rolled his eyes but didn't bother to reply.

They looked at each other questionably as they heard loud music coming from the writer's room. As they opened the door, they both stopped in the doorway, taking in the sight in front of them. Both Simon and Tom were standing on top of the table, whilst everyone else was crowded around them, laughing and cheering as Tom tried to perfect 'the running man.'

"What the hell are you doing?" Danny asked, a baffled look on his face.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to see the two executive producers staring at them.

"Uh, dancing..." Tom informed him, slowly.

Danny looked back at Matt who looked as confused as he was. "Why?"

"Well, it started with Simon saying he was crowned break-dancer of his year back in High school..." Tom started to explain as they both jumped off the table.

"And Tom said it looked easy..." Simon continued.

"And he challenged me to a dance off." Tom added.

Matt and Danny looked at each other again.

"You let this happen?" Matt asked, looking at the writers. "You were meant to be working."

"I thought there might be a sketch idea in there somewhere." Lucy answered.

"I was just curious as to how long it would take for Simon to realise he isn't 16 any more and what Tom's version of break dancing is." Andy told him.

Matt looked at him for a moment. "Okay."

"Well, are you finished now?" Danny asked. "Can we get back to work now."

"Sure..." Tom shrugged.

"Any ideas?" Matt asked.

There was silence in the room and everyone looked around at each other.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Work on something now... We'll be at the stage in 30 minutes, have something to show us."

"Yes, sir..." A few of them called out as Matt left the room without another word.

Danny watched him, he knew there had been something bothering Matt all week but he didn't know what.

"Is he okay?" Harriet asked Danny.

"He will be if you guys get an idea together." Danny replied, deciding not to share his concerns with them. "You've got 30 minutes."

Danny went straight to Matt's office, walking in without knocking because well... he never knocks.

"Take a break."

"I can't..." Matt replied. "I need to write something."

"They're working on it downstairs... It'll be fine."

"Really and what happens if they decided to host another 'Dancing with the stars' contest?" He asked sarcastically without looking up.

"Matt, they'll have something to show you in 30 minutes, I promise you." Danny told him. "Now just stop typing for 10 minutes!"

Matt sighed loudly and leaned back in his chair, looking at him. "Fine. Happy now?"

"Ecstatic." He replied dryly. "Now what's up with you?"

"It's Friday night and the show's not done." Matt replied, reaching for his laptop again.

Danny leaned over and closed it before he had chance. "Matt...?"

"Danny, it's nothing...I'm fine."

"No, you're not...There's been something bothering you all week, I let it go up until now but I'm starting to worry about you."

He looked at him again. "There's nothing to worry about..."

"Just tell me what's going on then."

"Why?"

"Because I want to know."

"Have you always been this nosey?" Matt questioned. "Because I can't remember you being like it..."

"I'm not joking around, Matt." Danny gave him a look telling him, he was being serious.

Matt rubbed his eyes and once again sat back in his chair. "I spoke to my Dad last weekend."

Danny sat back down, watching Matt trying to read the expression on his face. Danny knew that his Dad was the only relative Matt spoke to. Not a lot of people knew that his Mom had died when he was 16 years old. His Father remarried when he was 18 and people just assumed his step-mom was his real mom. Matt never bothered to correct anyone and Danny knew that was because it hurt too much for him to explain why his Mom wasn't around any more. He also had an older brother, Nick who was 3 years older then him. Danny didn't know too much about him. All he did know was that Matt really looked up to him when they were kids but trouble always followed Nick around. Danny had met him once, not long after he had met Matt. It was before either of them had started at studio 60. Matt had just come to LA from New York and was sleeping on Danny's couch in his one bedroom apartment. Nick had turned up and crashed on the floor. He seemed like a nice guy but he couldn't stop getting into trouble and Danny had been worried, he'd drag Matt down with him.

There had been a big fight between the two of them during his stay, which Danny still didn't know what was about but he hadn't seen or heard from Nick since and as far as he knew, Matt hadn't either.

"What did he say?" Danny questioned.

Matt looked at him for a moment. "Today would have been my Mom's birthday."

"God, Matt... Why didn't you say something?"

Matt shrugged, picking up his tennis ball and staring at it as he gripped it tightly in his hand. "I don't know, I never say anything."

"Look, why don't you go home or something...I'm sure I can handle the show alone, tonight."

"No, you can't."

"Okay, I can't but it'll be okay… you shouldn't need to worry about this."

"Danny, this is why I never say anything." Matt sighed. "I don't want to go home and think about it...I don't want today to be any different from any other day."

"Matt..."

"I appreciate it, I really do but its better if I'm here." Matt told him. "It was a long time ago and yeah, I'm a little sad but I got my own life to live. I can't dwell on the past."

"Okay, if you're sure that's what you want..."

"It is...I'll be fine..." Matt assured him. "All I'm worried about is filling the last slot."

"Well, I'm sure they'll have something to show you." Danny stood up. "I'm going to talk to Cal about some things but I'll see you at the stage in 15 minutes?"

"Yeah, okay... I'm going to try and fix this sketch." Matt replied, opening his laptop again and started to type.

_XxXxX_

"Why did he call you?" Danny asked, not looking up from the piece of paper he was reading as Matt sat down next to him in front of the stage...

"What?"

"Your Dad. How come he called you, last weekend? Why not today?"

"Does it matter?" Matt leaned forwards in his chair, looking back towards the door. "Where the hell are they?"

"They'll be here." Danny commented and then looked up at him. "So, why did he call?"

Matt sighed. "He thought it would have been nice if I went home for the weekend."

"To New York?" Danny asked, taking off his glasses.

"Yeah."

"You should go."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want to." Matt replied.

"You could do with a break..."

"I could do with people doing what they're told and being on time!"

Danny watched as Matt stood up and paced a little, bouncing his ball but he said no more. He knew that Matt wasn't going to say anything else. It was always like this, Matt would talk so much about his past and then close up.

Matt spun around when the door opened and everyone walked in, laughing.

"Nice of you to join us!"

"Uh, sorry..." Simon said, glancing at the others questionably at Matt's mood.

"Okay, lets see what you guys have come up with." Danny cut in before Matt had a chance to say any more. The last thing he needed was people asking him questions.

"Okay, Tom is a dance teacher..." Simon started to explain.

"I'm trying to teach Simon how to break-dance even though he already can... but I'm really bad and he's really good..."

"Won't Simon need to be good at break dancing for this?" Danny questioned.

"Yeah..." Simon nodded.

"Yeah, I don't think that will work." Matt stated and continued before Simon could protest. "Try this."

"What is it?" Tom asked, as Matt handed them all the sketch he had just wrote.

"Paris Hilton goes into prison with a reality TV crew." Matt told them. "Harriet is Paris...Tom is the prison officer and Simon is the camera man."

There was a few laughs as they all read it and Danny looked over at Matt.

"This is good... I thought you said you couldn't think of anything."

"I got the idea after you left, Jordan called my office looking for you. I got a ten minute lecture on why little blonde women shouldn't be allowed to work in relativity TV..." Matt explained. "All I said was that you had gone to talk to Cal about some stuff."

Danny let out a laugh. "She's a little hormonal."

"Really? You'd never be able to tell."

"Okay, guys...Let's give this a shot..." Danny said to the cast. "From the top."

Matt paced in front of the stage listening to Harriet, Tom and Simon perform the sketch. There were a few laughs from the people who were watching but Matt knew it still needed some work, it didn't flow as good as he wanted it to.

"Okay, stop." Matt said, sighing. He walked back over to Danny, retaking his seat and opening his laptop, staring at the screen.

Danny watched him silently but he didn't say anything. He knew there would be no point. Matt never talked about it. Danny knew little information but he knew there was more to Matt's family history.

Danny looked over at everyone else, who were all grouped together, talking and joking around. Everyone except Harriet, who was also watching Matt. She turned her eyes to Danny, questioning what was going on. Danny knew that Harriet knew less then he did. So, he just shrugged and looked away. When he looked back at Matt, he was re-reading the sketch over and over again, his lips moving as he mumbled the words quietly; trying his hardest to find what was missing. Danny could tell that he was thinking too hard and any minute he'd probably end up snapping.

"Matt, maybe you should..." He started quietly, leaning towards him but was cut off by the sound of the door crashing open.

"Sir, you can't go in there..."

Everyone spun around to see what was going on.

"I just want to see him..."

Matt jumped up from his seat when he recognised the voice and Danny did to.

"Nick?"

"Sorry, Mr Albie... he sneaked in whilst we were trying to get hold of you..." George explained. "We'll, deal with it..."

"No... No it's okay." Matt said quietly, looking at his older brother for the first time in 14 years.

"I... I should have called first..." Nick started. "But...but I was in the area...and I thought I should come and check on how you're doing."

Matt nodded slowly, trying to get his brain around what was happening. "I'm fine."

Nick looked down at the floor, his hand moving up to rub the back of his neck. Everyone could feel the tension in the room but no one said anything.

"How... how are you?" Matt stuttered.

"I've been doing okay..." He replied and once again there was silence.

Nick hated the silence; there was never ever any silence in their house before their Mom got sick. After that everything changed, he changed. He let everyone down, including Matt. He shifted uncomfortably under people's gaze.

"Uh, so...It's Danny right?" He looked over at him. "I slept on your floor, right?"

"Yeah..." He nodded.

Danny didn't know how to react. His first instinct was to get Matt as far away as possible from Nick. He was having a hard enough trouble dealing with all this, the last thing he needed was his brother to mess up everything he does have a grip on.

"I bet you're place is much better then that small cramped apartment you guys were sharing..." Nick joked.

"We weren't sharing...Danny let me stay there cos I had no where else." Matt cut in.

Nick looked at him for a moment before looking down and even Danny glanced at him in surprise at how harsh his comment sounded.

"Uh, yeah..." Was all Nick could say in reply.

Danny sighed. "Look, it might be a good idea if you came back another time."

"No... No it's okay." Matt said. "Uh, I've got to do this sketch and then... then maybe I could show you around the studio or something?"

Nick smiled. "I'd like that."

"Okay..."

Danny and Matt shared a look; Danny raising his eyebrow questionably and Matt tried to give him a reassuring look that everything was okay.

"Okay, you should meet some people." Matt continued, spinning around to point everyone out. "That's Simon, Tom and Harriet on the stage... Then there's Jeannie and Alex... the writers, Andy, Darius and Lucy... And that's Cal..."

"Nice to meet you all." Nick smiled politely at them all. "I'm a big fan of the show."

"Well then, you must be very proud of Matthew..." Harriet returned the smile.

"Yeah, like you couldn't believe." Nick replied, looking at Matt. "It's a good thing all those years ago you picked staying with Danny over coming with me."

"I didn't pick Danny..." Matt started defencelessly before stopping. "I didn't want to pick anyone...you made me."

"I know." He nodded slightly. "And I'm sorry... but at least it's worked out well for you."

"Yeah, it has." Matt replied.

"I'm sorry, Matty...I shouldn't have come here..." Nick sighed. "I should have kept my promise all those years ago...I should have stayed away."

"Nick..."

"You've done well, you don't need me screwing it up..." He continued. "I'll see you around."

"No, wait..." Matt moved from where he was standing for the first time to grab hold of his arm. "What's going on? Why did you come here?"

Nick looked at Matt for a moment. "I don't know Matty...everything...everything is always so messed up for me...nothing goes right...and today being... Well, you know what today is...I...I just needed to check on you...make sure you weren't as screwed up as I am."

"Lets go up to my office." Matt said quietly and Nick just nodded in rely.

Danny stopped Matt as he passed him.

"You going to be okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'll be okay." Matt replied. "And thanks."

"Don't worry about it..." Danny smiled slightly. "We'll have something to show you at the dress, okay? Just take your time...I got this covered."

"I know." Matt nodded before leading Nick to his office.

"Danny..." Harriet started.

"No questions." Danny told her. "Okay, lets start from the top and try and fix this sketch."

**TBC**

**Please review! **


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, guys here's the next part! I hope you like it! Please review!! **

**Enjoy!!! **

**A Monumental Reunion**

Matt watched as Nick slowly walked around his office, looking around silently. He shoved his hand deep in his pockets, he didn't know what to say to him.

"Wow, this is a nice office." Nick commented turning to face Matt again.

He nodded, looking down at the floor. "Yeah."

"Maybe I should just go and let you get back to work."

"No, you're here now." Matt looked up at him. "You might as well tell me what's going on."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "There's nothing much going on, Matt...My life is just such a mess."

"Want a drink?" Matt offered.

"I probably shouldn't." Nick shook his head.

Matt grabbed a bottle of water and sat down the couch, gesturing for Nick to sit down too.

"You living in LA now?" Matt questioned.

"Uh, sort of... I came down from New York two weeks ago..." He informed him.

"You sticking around then?"

"That depends how things go with you."

"What have I got to do with it?" Matt asked, picking at the label on the bottle.

"I want us to sort things out, Matt..." He told him. "I want to be brothers again."

"I haven't seen you in 14 years. You disappeared after I refused to move back home." Matt sighed. "Why now? What's changed?"

"I've changed... Things are different."

"How?"

"I have a son."

Matt head snapped in surprise. "What?"

"He's 4 years old." Nick smiled, reaching into his pocket and brought out his wallet.

Matt reached out and took it, looking at the photo of the small boy who looked so much like Nick.

"Wow." Matt whispered.

"I bet you never thought you'd be an uncle." Nick joked.

Matt handed the wallet back to him. "What's his name?"

"Matthew..."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I know that we've had problems but I've told him all about you...I'm so proud of what you've become, Matt... I wanted Matthew to have someone to idolise... I know that could never be me."

Matt shook his head. "You're his Dad."

"That doesn't mean anything." Nick stated. "Do you idolise our father?"

"It's completely different." Matt calmed.

Nick rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever Matt... he was never around for either of us to even get to know him, let alone idolise him."

"He tried his best!" Matt replied. "He had to travel for work or we'd have no money."

"What about when Mom got sick? He wasn't there then... He wasn't there to help us through it, he wasn't there to look after her or us." Nick raised his voice slightly. "He wasn't there when she died."

"Neither were you." Matt replied, coldly.

Nick broke eye contact straight away. "I know."

"Look, if you came here to argue about the past then maybe you should go..." Matt stood up. "Because I've moved on."

"I never came here to argue."

"Then what are you doing here then?!"

"I wanted to let you know about Matthew... I wanted to see if you were okay... I wanted to... I just wanted to see you."

Matt sighed and sat back down. "What's happened? Why have you left New York."

"I told you, I wanted to..."

"Nick, I got to do a live show tonight and there is still 5 minutes that I need to fill...I have not go time to guess what's going on with you." Matt cut in. "I know there's more to why you're here and I want to help if I can...but I haven't got time for games."

"I'm not allowed to see Matthew any more."

Matt looked at him silently for a moment before speaking. "Why not?"

"Apparently, I'm not a good enough father."

"They must have given you a reason, Nick." Matt replied. "They wouldn't have just done this."

"I was arrested again."

"What?"

"A friend, he was getting rid of this car. He said he'd give me a cut if I sold it for him but it was stolen." Nick explained. "The police caught me driving it and arrested me."

"Oh god..." Matt sighed.

"I promise, you Matty...I didn't know it was stolen."

"But you must have had a pretty good idea." Matt exclaimed. "God, Nick...you're not a kid any more...Why the hell can't you just stay out of trouble!"

"I'm sorry, I'm not perfect like you!"

"I'm not perfect." Matt let out a laugh. "I just know right from wrong."

"So do I!"

"Then try doing the right thing for once!"

"Y'know what? I didn't come here for a lecture, I've had enough of them." He got up and walked towards the door.

"Nick?"

"What?"

"Where are you staying?" Matt asked.

"What?" He turned to look at him.

"Where are you staying?" Matt repeated.

"A motel."

Matt walked over to his desk and pulling open the draw. He throw him a bunch of keys.

"You can stay at my place for a while until you've got yourself sorted." Matt told him. "I'll someone to take you there now."

"I really appreciate this, Matt." He whispered.

"Well, what are brothers for?"

Nick smiled slightly. "I owe you one."

"Yeah, you do." Matt replied, picking up the phone to order a car for him.

_XxXxX_

"The dress was good, all the sketch are selected, the cast and crew are happy..." Danny started walking out into Matt's office, taking a seat next to him. "So, lets talk."

"What about?"

"You know what about." Danny replied. "What is he doing here?"

Matt leaned forwards and rubbed his eyes. "He's having a hard time."

"Doesn't it bother you the only time you see him is when he's having a hard time and need you to bail him out?"

"Danny..." Matt sighed.

"I know he's your brother but he uses you, Matt."

"He needs my help." Matt replied. "I can't just turn my back on him."

"He turned his back on you." He reminded him.

"This is different."

"How?" Danny asked. "Because you never did tell me the full story of what happened all those years ago."

"It doesn't matter..."

"What did he mean earlier when he said you choose me over him?"

"He didn't think I should have stayed in LA... he thought I was wasting my time." Matt explained. "He wanted me to move back home."

"What does that have to do with me?"

"He thinks you're trying to take his place."

"His place?"

"When we were growing up, he look out for me. My Dad wasn't around but it was okay because Nick was there." Matt explained. "After everything that had happened and after I had moved to LA, I changed...I wasn't a kid who looked up to his big brother...I didn't need him...He hated that... He hated it even more because he thought it was your fault."

Danny sat silently, listening. It wasn't very often that Matt talked about his past.

"He said that if I didn't go back to New York then we weren't brothers any more... He said it was either him and New York or you and LA...I couldn't have both."

"After all that you still want to help him?"

"It's not just about him, Danny..." Matt replied. "I know I don't really have a lot to do with my family but I still care about them."

"I know that but..."

"I was so close to just letting him walk out of here earlier..."

"What stopped you?"

"I thought about my Mom." He whispered. "I thought about what she would say if she was here... Brothers stick together."

Danny sighed, he knew there was nothing he could say that would be able to change Matt's mind.

"Well, it's your decision." Danny told him. "You know where I am if you need anything."

"I know..." Matt nodded.

Danny gave him a small smile and stood up. "I better go and check everything is still running smoothly."

"Okay." Matt nodded. "I'll see you in a bit?"

"Yeah." Danny slapped him on the back as he passed him. "Good show."

"Good show." Matt repeated quietly as Danny left.

_XxXxX_

Wednesday afternoon, Danny walked towards the stage with his day planner in his hand.

"Department's Heads meeting...check... Lunch with Jordan...Check... Meeting with Cal...Check... Coffee break..check..." He said, reading down his list. "Okay, so the next thing is watching Simon and Tom's new sketch."

"Who you talking too?" Harriet appeared by his side causing him to jump.

"No one."

Harriet laughed slightly. "Okay."

"Was there something you wanted other then give me a heart attack?"

"I wanted to ask about Matt."

"What about him?"

"Is he okay?"

"He's fine."

"He hasn't been his normal self the last few days."

"How do you mean?"

"For a start we haven't had an argument for 5 days."

Danny rolled his eyes. "You're seriously complaining about that?"

"Not complaining...just pointing it out." She replied. "But like I said...he's not been himself... not since his brother turned up."

"So?"

"So, if anyone knows what's going on with him then it you."

"Again...So?"

"Danny, I'm just worried about him." She sighed.

"Look, he's okay...He's not use to his family being around but it's not a problem."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"And you would tell me if there was something serious going on wouldn't you."

"Of course."

"Okay..." She replied but still unsure. "Okay, I better get back to work."

"Me too...The guys want to show me the new sketch you've been working on."

"Why aren't we showing, Matt?"

"He's stressing over the spider man sketch...you can show him later."

"Danny, I meant it when I said..."

"I know, I know..you're worried." He cut in. "But there nothing to worry about..."

"Fine." She sighed.

Danny was surprised when he saw Nick was sitting in front of the stage, laughing and joking around with Simon and Tom.

"Hey, guys." Tom said when he saw Danny and Harriet walking over.

"You're here again." Danny muttered to Nick, taking the paper that they had wrote the sketch down from Simon.

"Yeah..." Nick looked at him, he watched him quietly for a moment before speaking. "You don't like me, do you?"

"I don't know you." Danny answered, as he read the sketch.

"Well, maybe Matt, you and I could all go out..."

"And I don't want to know you." Danny added, interrupting him.

Simon, Tom and Harriet all looked at each other questionable before stepping back away from the pair.

"Well, that's fine with me..." Nick replied but was slightly surprised.

After a few seconds, Danny looked up at him. "Matt's worked hard to get where he is..."

"And you think I'm here to screw that up?!" Nick asked. "Like you said, you don't know me."

"No but I know Matt...I know what he was like when he first came to LA...I remember how long it took for him to get his life on track... Then I remember how all that got messed up when you turned up...How he turns into another person when you're around... I know, how devastated he was when you took off again because no matter how many mistakes you make or who you hurt...Matt will always give you a second chance... I know every time you come back, he thinks you've changed and everything will be like it was before."

"What the hell do you know?!" Nick exclaimed.

"More then you think... I'm not like Matt, I can see what kind of person you are... I know you're not going to change." Danny stated. "I'm not going to sit here and watch you destroy everything that Matt has worked for."

"I would never do anything to hurt him."

"It's a bit late for that." Danny shot back. "But I'm warning you, Nick...you do it again, you'll have me to deal with."

"You're forgetting that I'm his brother...not you! You're just his friend." Nick told him. "We're from the same place. We have a same blood."

"You might have the same blood but you're not his brother...a brother wouldn't let him down like you have...I know, I'm not a perfect guy...I've made mistakes but I'm still here... and so is Matt...we've been to hell and back but we've always stuck by each other..." Danny said. "The difference between you and me... I'd never walk away from him when he needs me."

Nick stared at Danny, lost for words because he knew he was right.

"Tell Matt, I'll see him later." He mumbled before walking towards the door.

"Danny..." Harriet started.

"Please, don't...It's not a problem." Danny held his hand up to stop her. "Okay, show me this sketch."

Matt stepped back into his office, quietly closing the door. No one had seen him but he had seen them and he heard everything Danny had just said.

**TBC**

**Please review and let me know what you think!! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys, here's the next chapter! Please review and let me know what you think!!! **

**Enjoy!!! **

**A Monumental Reunion **

"You know, if you turn the key the car will start up..."

Matt turned and saw Harriet standing next to the passenger door of his convertible car.

"Hey."

"Are you okay?" She asked.

"Sure."

"Well, it's just you've been sat here for 20 minutes now." She commented.

He raised an eyebrow. "You been spying on me?"

She couldn't help a small smile. "I thought you were going home."

"Yeah, that was the plan..." He sighed, leaning his head back against the headrest.

"Matthew? What's wrong?" She asked softly.

"Nothing."

"Matthew..."

"It's nothing, honestly..."

"Is it about your brother?" She questioned. "He's staying at your place, right?"

"Yeah."

"So, don't you want to get home and spend some time with him?"

"I... it's just there's so much going through my head at the moment...I can't get that Spider Man sketch right." He explained. "I'm just trying to clear my head."

She looked at him for a moment, knowing he wasn't telling her the truth but decided against pushing him for more information.

"Well, okay...if you're sure." She said slowly. "I'll leave you to it."

"Harri..." He called as she started to walk off. "Wanna go for a ride?"

"What?"

"Want to go for ride?" He repeated. "Just drive around for a bit and relax."

"You sure you wouldn't just rather go home?" She asked, walking back over to the car.

"Not really..."

"Want to talk about it?"

"No."

"Maybe I should go and get Danny...So you can talk to him." She suggested.

"No... Just... please, let's just go for a drive... and have fun like we used to." He replied. "I just want to forgot about everything for an hour...the show, our fights, my brother... everything."

"Okay then..." She agreed, opening the door and getting in.

"Great." He grinned and started up the engine.

Harriet pressed a few buttons on Matt's stereo as he drove. Matt looked over at her and smiled when she put in his 'Snow Patrol' album.

"This is a good CD." He stated.

"Yeah, I've got it too..."

"I remember...I had to buy my own copy when we broke up." He joked lightly.

She let out a quiet laugh and then relaxed back into her seat.

"God, I love this car." She whispered, closing her eyes as the breeze washed over her face.

"You do realise that you can afford to buy one yourself, right?"

"It's not the same."

"What's not?" He glanced at her.

"Driving around in it myself..." She explained. "I like you driving me around in it."

He looked at her once more and smiled but didn't say any more.

They drove in silence for the next 5 minutes, just listening to the music and enjoying the peace.

"What are we doing here?" Harriet asked as Matt parked up near some woodland.

"We used to come here all the time." He shrugged, turning to face her. "We haven't been in ages."

"That's cos we used to come here on dates and now we're broken up." She pointed out.

"No, even before we broke up, we never came up here."

"Maybe that was our problem."

"We stopped making time for each other."

She sighed. "Matt, what are you saying?"

"Nothing...I... I don't know." He sat back in his chair, running his hand through his hair. "I just...I..."

"Just what?" She asked, concerned.

"Nothing." He moved his hands from his hair to grip the stirring wheel tightly.

"No, Matt...Talk to me." She said, softly reaching over and taking hold of one of his hands.

"I...I just forgot why we broke up."

"The normal reasons, Matt... Difference of opinion... neither of us wanting to admit we're wrong..."

"None of that seems important now." He whispered causing her to stop.

She looked at him for a moment. "You're starting to worry me, now...What's going on? What's made you like this?"

"It doesn't matter...forget about it." He stated, reaching to start the car up again. "We better get back..."

"No, Matt..." She grabbed his hand to stop him turning the key. "Is this about your brother?"

He sighed, letting his head fall back against the headrest.

"What is it? What has he done?"

"He's... he's just not the same person any more." Matt stated. "But neither am I..."

"And how do I fit into all of this?" She asked. "Why is all of this suddenly making you think about the reasons our relationship fell apart?"

"Because...because I haven't got a family..." He told her.

"What?"

"I'm not close to my family... I haven't been in years...I hardly see my Dad... this is the first time I've seen my brother in 14 years...I have no family..." He explained. "Except for Danny...and you... Danny is like a brother to me...And you... I don't know, I just always assumed one day we'd become each others family officially."

"I wanted that too, remember?" She said softly. "But it didn't work out..."

"But why?"

"I don't know, Matt..." She sighed. "You tell me."

"I'm sorry..." He rubbed his eyes. "I'm sorry I brought all this up."

"No, don't be..."

He looked at her and smiled slightly. "We better get back..."

"Yeah..." She nodded slightly.

They both stayed silent on the way back. Neither of them knew what to say. Harriet had no idea why Matt suddenly brought it all up. She had been worried there was something going on with him and his brother before but now she was really worried. She decided that she would talk to Danny about it tomorrow. He obviously knew more then she did.

"I'll see you at the studio tomorrow?" Matt said, breaking her train of thoughts. She looked up and realised they were outside her house.

Uh, yeah...yeah sure..." She nodded. "Thanks for the drive... it was nice."

She leaned in and kissed his cheek. She couldn't help but look in his eyes as she pulled back slightly. They stared at each other for a few seconds before Harriet leaned in again, pressing her lips against his.

Matt kissed back at first but then slowly broke it.

"Do... do you want a coffee or something?" She whispered.

"Yes." He replied. "But I shouldn't."

"Matt..."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have let this happen..."

"Let what happen?" She asked. "The kiss? Because I wanted it as much as you...maybe we... we should go in and talk about this..."

"No because normally when we talk about this kind of thing it always leads to something else."

"And that's a bad thing?"

"No." He smiled slightly. "But it's not the right time."

"What does that mean?"

"It means... I'm... I've got a lot of things going on at the moment..." He stated. "I don't think it would be fair on you...or me... if we started things up again."

"Oh..."

He reached out and stroked her cheek gently. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be..." She gave him a small smile. "I understand."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I think so..." She nodded. "Just promise me, that you'll remember where I am if you ever need to talk."

"Thank you." He whispered.

"No problem." She moved to get out of the car. "So, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yep."

"Bye..."

He watched her as she walked towards her house. She glanced back at him and gave him another smile before disappearing out of sight.

"Damn it!" He whispered to him, letting his head fall onto the stirring wheel. How did he just let things get even more complicated?

_XxXxX_

"So, that's the show." Cal announced, as he stood beside Matt and Danny, all of them staring at the board filled with sketches.

"Yeah, it's going to be a good night." Danny nodded, turning and walking over to Matt's couch, taking a seat.

"Uh, yeah..." Matt said, watching him.

"Cal, can you give us a moment?" Danny asked.

Cal looked between the two of them. He knew there was something going on. Simon and Tom had told him about the fight Danny had with Matt's brother. Also everyone noticed a difference in Matt's mood this week.

"Sure." He shrugged.

"Thanks."

"What's going on?" Matt asked once Cal was gone.

"Nothing."

"Danny..." Matt sighed, moving to sit behind his desk. "What is it?"

"Your brother is here tonight, right?"

"Yeah."

"You spoken to him much the last few days?"

"I've been kind of busy here..."

"So, he hasn't said anything to you about me?"

"What is this? 20 questions?"

Danny leaned forward and rubbed his eyes. "Matt, something happened the other day... I need to talk you about it."

"You had a fight with Nick." Matt shrugged, standing up. "So, what?"

"So what?" Danny frowned, watching as Matt grabbed a couple of bottles of water, handing him one.

Matt sighed. "I know you where trying to stand up for me..."

"Did Harriet tell you?" Danny cut in.

"What? No..."

"Tom then?" He questioned. "Or Simon..."

"Danny, it was no one... I heard it all...I was standing on the balcony."

"And you're not mad?"

"Why would I be mad?"

"I basically told your brother to take a hike."

"Now, that I would have like to have seen..." Matt joked.

"Matt...I'm being serious!"

"So am I." He stated. "Relax, I'm not mad, okay?"

"What's changed?"

Matt rolled his eyes. "Why is it so hard for you to let this go?"

"Because last time I tried to get involved with you and your brother, you threw your dinner at me!"

"This time is different." Matt told him. "And that was an accident, I didn't mean to do it."

"How is it different?" Danny questioned before adding. "And yeah right, it was an accident...The food I could have believed but then a jug of water followed..."

"I was trying to help you wash off." Matt shrugged, smiling slightly.

Danny rolled his eyes but couldn't but smile too. "So, how is this different?"

"I've changed." Matt stated. "I've grown up..."

"Really, when did that happen?" Danny teased.

"Ha ha." Matt replied.

"You're seriously okay?" Danny asked.

"Yes." Matt exclaimed slightly.

"Okay, calm down..." Danny held his hands up in defence.

"Look, I just... I appreciate what you said." Matt told him. "I don't know why Nick is here. I don't know what he wants and I really appreciated you standing up for me."

"Matt, of course I'm going stand up for you." Danny stated. "I'm just worried, he's going to cause you trouble whilst he's here."

Matt let out a small laugh. "Me too."

"Then get rid of him."

"I can't...He's my brother."

"So..."

"So, it'll be okay." Matt cut in. "I promise...He'll stay for a few days and then he'll get bored and head home..."

"And you're sure about that."

"That's what he always does."

"Well, it's your decision." Danny walked towards the door. "But I meant what I said Matt... If he messes with you, then he'll have me to deal with."

Matt looked at him for a moment before nodding slightly. "I know."

"I better get to the stage. Talk later?"

"Yeah." Matt replied. "Good show."

"Good show."

_XxXxX_

"Hey, you were great tonight." Matt said, approaching Harriet at the wrap party.

"Thanks." She gave him a small smile before looking away.

He frowned, knowing the smile was fake. "What's up?"

"Nothing."

"Harriet?"

"Matthew, don't worry about it..." She told him. "It's fine, honestly."

"What's going on?" He asked again.

"I don't want to upset you."

"Why would you upset me?"

"I was talking to your brother earlier."

"And?"

"Nothing...it's nothing...I'm just being crazy."

"No change there then." He teased, smiling when he managed to get a real smile from her. "What happened with Nick?"

She sighed. "He just said a few things, that's all...I think he had been drinking... he probably doesn't even know what he said."

"What did he say?" Matt prompted.

"Just that your Mom wouldn't approve of our relationship..."

"What?"

"I mean, I guess I can sort of understand that... you being Jewish and me being Christian..." She continued. "But...but it's just... he said that was why you never proposed..."

"I don't believe this..." Matt muttered, his eyes starting to scan the room for his brother.

"Is that true?" She asked. "Is that why we kept breaking up? Because you knew your family wouldn't approve."

"Of course it isn't." He stated. "My family would want me to be with someone I love..."

"But he said your Mom would hate it if you..."

"Well, for a start my Mom died almost 20 years ago now...So I don't think Nick has the right source of information..."

"What? You're Mom is dead..." Harriet's eyes widened. "How... why... you never said..."

"Yeah, I don't talk about it..." He replied and then he saw Nick sat at the bar. "Look, I'll talk you later."

"Matt?!" She called after him and sighed when he kept pushing his way through the crowd.

"Who the hell gave you the right to decided who and what Mom would have approved of?!" Matt hissed as he reached his brother.

Nick gave him a sidewards glance as he brought his glass up to his mouth. "What are you talking about?"

"Harriet... you told Harriet that Mom wouldn't approve!"

"So..." He shrugged. "Who cares, you dumped her ages ago right?"

"I care!" Matt started, but stopped himself, taking a deep breath. "Y'know, I'm not having this conversation whilst you're drunk."

"Whatever."

"Don't serve him any more." Matt said to the bartender.

"Why don't you just get off my back!" Nick exclaimed loudly, causing a few people to look towards them. "If I want a drink I'll have a drink!"

"Not here you won't..."

"Matt?" Danny asked, walking towards them quickly.

"Ohh, Danny to the rescue!" Nick laughed.

"It's okay..." Matt told Danny. "I can handle it."

"Yeah, why don't you run along now?" Nick added.

"Shut up!" Matt glared at him.

Nick rolled his eyes and turned his back to them both. Danny stepped forwards but Matt held him back.

"Danny, don't..." He told him.

Danny looked at him for a moment before sighing and backing off.

"I want you to leave..." Matt said to Nick.

"What?"

"I want you out... out of here...out of my house...out of my life."

"Matty..."

"Don't! Don't even try..." Matt interrupted. "I don't care any more... I don't care about anything you have to say to me."

"Matt, please..."

Matt looked towards a few of the security guards, who had come over when they had heard raised voices.

"Make sure he's off these premises." Matt ordered, noticing that everyone in the room had stopped what they were doing to watch what was happening.

"Yes, Mr Albie..." One of the guards replied.

"Mr Albie..." Nick laughed. "That's a joke!"

Matt sighed and turned to walk away.

"Does anyone in here actually know your real name, Matty?" Nick called after him causing him to stop and look back at him. "I take that as a no then..."

"You're drunk, Nick... just do the right thing and walk away..."

"I'm guessing from that confused look on Danny's face he didn't know..." Nick ignored him to point at Danny. "And I thought you two shared everything."

"Get lost, Nick."

"Come on, Matt... Tell everyone! Tell everyone who you really are!"

"So, I changed my last name...What's the big deal!? Lots of people do it!" Matt stated. "I don't care what you or any else thinks!"

"If you don't care what anyone thinks, why are you hiding who you use to be?"

"Because of you!" He exclaimed.

"What?"

"God, Nick...wake up! Don't you understand?! It's because of you! I'm so damn ashamed that you're my brother that I had to change my name so no one would find out!"

"You...you don't mean that..." Nick stuttered.

"Don't I?"

"You're just mad... you're just letting off steam."

Matt sighed and closed his eyes, he'd had enough of all this.

"I know because we're brothers... we're close...we know everything about each other..."

"I haven't seen you in 14 years and you turned up here acting all pally... I don't know you... you don't know me... we're not brothers... we've stopped being brothers a long time ago ...when you finally get that then it will be better for both of us because I'm sick of this, Nick...I'm sick of you."

"This was what I was talking about!! This is why I didn't want you to stay in LA!" Nick raised his voice. "You would have never acted like this before! Being here around all these people has changed you!"

"What's so wrong about that?!"

"You've forgotten who you are...where you came from!" Nick claimed. "When was the last time you went back home to New York!"

"Two months ago!" Matt replied.

"What? I... I didn't... you never said you were..." Nick stuttered confused to why he didn't know his brother had gone home.

"I didn't tell you because I didn't want to see you!"

"So, what? You went home and saw Dad? You played happy families with him and his new wife?!"

"No, actually I didn't... I didn't see them at all."

"Then what were you doing there?"

"I donate money to the local hospital..." Matt answered, quietly. "I go and see how everything is going down there every so often... I go to our school as well... I talk to the kids... So, don't you dare tell me I don't know where I come from because I'm trying my hardest to make everything better for everyone!"

"Danny, maybe you should stop this..." Jack said to him as everyone continued to watch.

"No." Danny answered, his eyes fixed on Matt.

"What?"

"Matt needs to tell him how he feels... if he doesn't do it now... he never will..."

"Danny, this looks like it's going to get out of hand." Jordan added.

"Trust me..." Danny replied.

"You think by throwing money at people makes you a better person?"

"Oh get real, Nick...you're trying to lecture me on being a better person? Tell me, how many times have you been in jail now?!"

"You know what! Do what you like! I don't care any more!" Nick shouted. "You've changed! I don't know who you are any more!"

"Yeah, I've changed! I've turned into someone different! Someone better...Someone successful...someone happier!" Matt shot back. "I had to change! If I didn't, I would have turned out like you...all messed up!"

"I'd rather be messed up then turn my back on my own family!"

"Yeah and you're the perfect brother... the prefect son! Where the hell were you when Mom needed you! When I needed you?!" Matt exclaimed. "Do you know what it was like for me to watch her die, knowing she was heart broken by what you had done! Who you had become!"

"And I'm sure she would have just loved you shacked up with Miss Bible Basher over there!" He pointed at Harriet. "Or were you just sleeping with her to get your name known..."

He was cut off by Matt's fist punching him hard in the mouth, sending him crashing to the floor. There were a few gasps around the room in surprise.

Matt had surprised himself, he just couldn't stop himself. Nick stared up at him from the floor, as there was silence in the whole room.

Matt's hands started to shake and he could feel himself starting to loose control of his emotions. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes... he quickly turned and walked towards the door.

"Matt..." Harriet called out.

"No, don't...let me..." Danny stopped her. He looked back at Nick. "Get the hell out! Stay away from Matt!"

Nick didn't say anything, instead watched Danny running towards the door that Matt had just gone through.

**TBC**

**Please review and let me know what you think!!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys, sorry its been a while since I've updated, but my city is drowning.. lol I've been flooded. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think!! **

**Enjoy!!!**

**A Monumental Reunion **

"Go back to the party." Danny said, as he took the stair two at a time, knowing that he was being followed.

"I want to make sure he's okay." Harriet replied.

When he reached the top of the stairs, he turned around and was a little surprised to see Jordan and Jack with Harriet.

"Let me deal with him." He told them.

"He's just punched someone...You do realise that the press probably already know and are running stories on how the executive producer of Studio 60 is out of control!" Jack added.

"Someone? It was his brother... who is a jackass and deserved it..." Danny replied. "And sometimes there are more important things than the press."

"Yeah, well right now I don't care about those things." Jack shot back. "I want to talk to him and find out what the hell is going on!"

"He won't tell you."

"Oh yes he will!!"

"Jack, he hasn't told anyone... not even me!" Danny exclaimed. "Why the hell would he tell you?"

"You mean, you don't know what's going on here?" Jordan questioned.

"All I know is that whenever Nick turns up, Matt goes into this weird mood...he doesn't talk about anything..." Danny replied. "Something happened between them in the past and I've never been able to find out what it was."

"I've never seen Matt like that before." Harriet whispered.

"It's like he's a different person." Danny agreed with a slight nod. "Now do you understand why I didn't want Nick around him."

"What was all that stuff about his name being changed?" Jack asked, as they all started to follow Danny towards Matt's office.

He shrugged. "I don't know."

"Danny..."

"Jack, I swear to you...All I know is that Matt's Mom died when he was younger and it hit his family really hard. Which is why he doesn't have a lot of contact with them now." Danny informed them. "Nick turned up a couple of years back before Matt and I started here. There was some big fight between them and that was the last we saw of him."

"This isn't good for the show."

"This isn't good for Matt!"

"Yeah, that's what I meant..." Jack waved his hand dismissively. "Let's just go talk to him."

"I don't think that's a good idea." Danny stated. "Please just let me deal with him..."

"We want to help." Jordan said softly, placing a hand on Danny's arm.

"I know, but I don't think Matt will appreciate it. He'll probably be all worked up and say some things he shouldn't..."

"Well, I've got to say...he looks out of control." Jack said sarcastically, as they reached Matt's office and looked through the window. He was sat at his desk, looking ahead calmly.

"Oh crap." Danny muttered.

"What?" Jordan looked at him alarmed.

"It would be easier if he was throwing things."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Yes, because some of the press might not have heard about his violent outbreak at the party... So him ransacking his office would round the story off nicely."

"Why don't you just go back to the party?" Danny turned and glared at him. "You're not needed here."

"Hey! This is my network..."

"And this is my best friend!" Danny shot back. "The last thing he needs now is you banging on about the show! He won't let the show suffer. I guarantee you that whatever happens tonight, there will be a show on next Friday and it will be as good as every other show."

Suddenly the door opened and Matt appeared. "You could at least have the curiosity to talk about me quietly."

"Matthew, are you okay?" Harriet asked concerned as they all they turned to face him.

"I'm fine... And I'm sorry, if the press find out, then I'll apologise...and Danny is right, I won't let it effect the show."

Jack looked at him unsure for a moment. "Fine."

"I'm guessing you're not going to let it go that easily?" Matt looked at Danny.

"Not a chance."

"Didn't think so." He sighed and turned to the others. "You guys go and enjoy the rest of the party."

"Matthew..." Harriet started.

"Go and enjoy the party." He cut in softly. "I'm fine..."

She gave him a look of disbelief.

"Okay, I will be fine." He corrected. "Just go."

"If that's what you want." She sighed, knowing that she wouldn't be able to win this one. Anyway, if anyone can get Matt to talk then it was Danny.

"Thank you."

"I'll see you downstairs." Jordan said to Danny as the three of them slowly started to head back down.

"So, can we get this over with?" Matt said, walking back into his office leaving Danny to follow him.

"What the hell was all that about?"

"Just some stuff from the past...It doesn't matter, now...I just lost it for a moment."

"Of course it matters, Matt..."

"Look, I'll get rid of Nick." He told him. "Everything will go back to normal..."

"Until the next time he turns up."

"Danny..." Matt sighed, dropping down into his chair.

"Matt, I couldn't give a damn about the show or Nick right now." Danny said quietly. "I've never seen you like that before...I'm worried about you."

"I'll be fine." He mumbled looking down.

"Why did you change your name?"

Matt glanced up before answering. "Albie was my Mom's maiden name... I don't know, I guess I wanted to do something that would keep her memory alive."

Danny nodded slightly. "What was it before?"

"Hunter."

"Matt Hunter?" Danny questioned before shaking his head, not being able to make sense of it all. "How the hell did I not know about this?!"

"What's the big deal? Lots of people change their names. Harriet's real name is Hannah and no one cares about that!"

"Harriet didn't hide the fact she's using a different name." Danny replied. "What's going on, Matt? What did you mean when you said to him about changing it so no one found out about him being your brother?"

Matt ran a hand through his hair, nervously and looked down… "Nothing... I was just trying to get at him."

"I don't believe you."

"Why would I lie?" He asked, he looked up but wouldn't look Danny in the eye.

"I don't know... And that worries me."

"Danny..."

"We've always been there for each other, Matt...Nothing really big has happened apart from my drug addiction but we've always been there for each other."

"I know that." He whispered.

"Now, I wondering whether you've been completely straight with me about everything." Danny continued. "I wondering whether you've been going through something all by yourself..."

"It's not a problem..."

"You hid it from people!" Danny cut him off. "You hid it from me!! All the little things... all the things that weren't really a problem...You told me about those...I was always the first person you told, you said that yourself...So, why did you keep this from me?"

Matt stared at him, trying to work out in his head what to say but he didn't know. Danny stared right back at him, silently telling him that he wasn't going to let this go. Matt averted his gaze once more and turned his chair slightly to face the other way.

"Matt..." Danny said softly but when he didn't reply, he grabbed the chair and forcefully turned him back towards him. "I'm not going anywhere, Matt...I'm not giving up on this...I'm not going to let you deal with whatever it is on your own any more."

"I'm okay..."

"No, you're not, Matt...I know you're not...And I need to know why or I can't help you." Danny told him. "Whatever happened between you and Nick must have been big... you're brothers... you don't just hate each other like that for no reason."

"He's a good guy, Danny…I know, he's a bit screwed up...but he's a good guy...He never used to be like this."

Danny leaned back in his chair. "You've said that before...And I believe you."

"He's...he's just had a hard time." He mumbled.

"What happened?" Danny asked. but Matt was silent. "Matt? What happened?"

"My Dad was never around and when my Mom got sick, Nick was the one that took care of everything." Matt explained. "But he was just 18, Danny...He shouldn't have been doing any of that stuff...He didn't need to stay at home and look after her and me...but he did."

Danny nodded silently, he was a little afraid that if he spoke, Matt would stop.

"I...I don't think he could handle it all...I mean, my...my Mom...she got really sick...there were days when she couldn't even get out of bed..."

"That must have been really hard for the both of you." Danny commented.

"Yeah..." He whispered. He looked ahead, deep in thought before snapping himself out of it. "But y'know... we were a family...we stuck together and tried to get through it."

"So, what changed?" Danny leaned forwards a little.

"Hmm?"

"What changed? Why aren't you that same family?" Danny questioned. "Why do you try to have as little to do with him?"

"Because he's changed."

"How?"

"How?" Matt repeated, thinking about it.

"Matt?" Danny prompted when he was quiet for a few minutes.

"I used to think it was because he changed..."

"Used to?" Danny frowned a little.

"But...but he hasn't changed...I'm the one that's changed..."He replied. "I...I moved on...I got on with my life...he didn't... he...he still lets what happened effect him..."

"Your Mom?" Danny inquired.

Matt nodded slightly. "And other...other stuff."

"What other stuff?"

Matt pushed himself to his feet and walked over to the window that looked down onto the stage, where he could see people starting to leave the wrap party.

"This is why you don't see him, isn't it?" Danny predicted.

"I knew I could never be happy living how I was...I knew I had to change." Matt whispered, his back towards Danny. "I knew that if I didn't I'd be so screwed up."

Danny stood up and moved behind him. "What did he do, Matt?"

"He was a good guy, Danny..." Matt stated quickly, turning to face him. "He doesn't do these things to hurt people...he...he just doesn't think things through first..."

"What things?"

"When...when my Mom died...he wasn't there." Matt started. "He was in prison."

"What did he do?" Danny questioned, calmly, taking Matt's arm and guiding him back over to the couch.

"One night, he was at a party and had a few drinks... then...then he tried to drive home." Matt said quietly.

"Drunk?"

Matt nodded. "He crashed into a car...there was a family of four...they...they all died."

"Oh my God."

"Two kids, died, Danny..." Matt whispered, looking up at him. "A 6 year old...and a baby... she was only a few months old."

"I don't know what to say." Danny replied, after a few seconds. He knew that Nick had spent sometime in jail but he couldn't believe it was over something like this.

"I should have stopped it."

"How could you have stopped it?"

"I was with him at the party...I was 15, but he used to take me out with him...I knew he was drunk... I knew he was going to drive home...but I walked off...I refused to go with him."

"Good! You could have ended up dead too!"

"I should have done more."

"Matt, you were just a kid!"

"So was he." He shot back before running his hand through his hair. "With everything that was happening...I...I never thought things could have gotten any worse..."

"He chose to drink that night, Matt...And he chose to drive...You had the sense not to get in the car...You can't put your life on hold because of this." Danny told him. "If you had been in the car, you wouldn't have been able to stop it... That family would have still died...and you too."

"The parents and the baby...they died on impact...but the 6 year old...he died at hospital."

"That doesn't change anything..."

"It does."

"Why?"

"Because Nick kept driving...After the accident, he kept driving..." Matt informed him. "They said if the kid had gotten medical treatment sooner, he could have survived."

"Matt..."

"If I was there...I wouldn't have left...I would have helped!"

"Matt, you can't..." Danny tried to cut in but Matt continued.

"He was charged with manslaughter...If he would have stayed...if he would have admitted what he did then it would have been a lesser charge... then he wouldn't have so much trouble getting a decent job... he would be able to move on...because he never meant it, Danny...he never meant to kill them."

Danny fell silent; he couldn't believe Matt had kept this to himself all this time. He had known that Matt had some problems with his family but he would have never have guessed it was this bad.

"It wasn't your fault, Matt..." Danny said quietly. "There was nothing you could have done."

"I just walked away... I knew he was going to get into the car." Matt whispered. "I knew and I let him..."

Danny watched as he dropped onto the couch and buried his head in his hands. He didn't know what to say or do.

_XxXxX_

"How long does it take?" Jack complained as he paced around slightly on the stage.

"As long as it takes." Jordan sent her boss a look. "You can always go home."

"Yeah right." Jack replied sarcastically.

Harriet sighed and looked up at the balcony of Matt's office, praying that he was okay.

"Everyone has decided to head to that new club..." Simon informed them as Tom and him walked over to them. "Is there anything we can do?"

"Danny is talking to Matt." Jordan replied.

"I've never seen him like that before." Cal added.

"Me either..." Harriet whispered.

"I wonder what happened..."

"Everything was fine until he turned up." Harriet answered as they all turned their attention to Nick, who was still sat at the bar.

They all turned around when they heard the door behind them open and Danny walked in.

"Where's Matt?" Harriet asked, before Danny walked straight past her towards, Nick.

"Danny maybe you should leave it..." Jordan tried to grab his arm but he ignored them all, only stopping when he reached the bar.

"Leave." He told Nick, taking the drink out of his hand.

"I want to see Matt..." Nick replied.

"Well, you can't."

"He's my brother..."

"Look, he's told me what happened..." Danny cut in.

"So?"

"Do you know he blames himself?" Danny questioned.

Nick turned to look at him and frowned slightly. "What?"

"He thinks he should have been able to do something...He blames himself."

"I need to talk to him." He went to stand up.

"No, just leave...let him get on with his life...let him move on...he can't whilst you're here."

"I can't leave him...not like this...I promised I'd take of him!" Nick claimed.

"Let me."

"What?"

"Let me take care of him...I know he's your brother and you love him... but he's my brother too now." Danny told him quietly. "Just...just go...please...if you don't he'll never be able to move on."

Nick stared at Danny, trying to decide what the best thing to do was.

"Tell...tell him I said bye, yeah?" Nick said, inaudibly. "And that I'm sorry...for everything."

Danny nodded. "I will."

Nick turned and headed for the door but once he got there, he stopped and faced Danny again.

"You will look out for him, right?"

"I promise."

Nick nodded once and then disappeared through the door.

"Danny..." Harriet started.

"Matt is doing some work...I'm gonna stay with him for a bit...you should all go home."

"But..."

"Harri, it's okay...go home."

She sighed. "Tell him to call me when he gets a chance."

"Yeah, I will but everything is fine."

"About the press..." Jack cut in.

"They will have forgotten by Monday and it will be a new week." Danny stated.

"You better hope they have." He muttered before turning and leaving...the others slowly following.

Danny sighed and headed for Matt's office...hoping it would all work out like he said it would.

**TBC**

**Please review!! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey, guys here's the next chapter! Thanks for all the reviews! Please keep them coming!! **

**Enjoy!!! **

**A Monumental Reunion **

"Tom, you need to work more on you accent more, you're meant to be French..." Matt told him, once they had finished performing the sketch they were working on.

"What accent was it then?" Tom questioned.

"An American pretending to be French."

"Well, I am an American pretending to be French."

Matt sighed and rubbed his eyes. "You're meant to be playing a French man."

"Right..." Tom nodded. "And you want me to sound French?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, was it important to tell you now, I don't know any French before we started?"

Matt stared at him for a moment, resisting the urge to throw his pen at him so he turned to look at Simon.

"You got anything for News 60?"

"Harriet and I are working on it." Simon replied, a little amused by Matt and Tom's conversation.

"Right, okay good..." Matt looked down at his paper.

"Hey, how's it going?" Danny asked, walking towards them.

"Don't ask." Simon laughed slightly.

"Can't we change it to a Spanish guy?" Tom looked up from his script.

"No!"

"But I did Spanish at High school."

"Tommy, it's a sketch about a French guy who doesn't speak a word of English trying to communicate with his only English speaking work colleague."

"Can't it be a sketch about a Spanish guy who doesn't speak a word of English trying to communicate with his only English speaking work colleague?"

Matt turned to look at Danny, desperately. "Are there any rules about me killing a member of staff?"

"Well, none set by the network but I'm pretty sure there are some laws about it."

"Why don't we just give it another go?" Simon suggested.

"Yeah, lets see what you got." Danny nodded, taking a seat next to Matt.

Matt buried his head in his hands, as none of what Tom said was correct.

"Copy me...Je suis nouveau ici, il est gentil de vous rencontrer." Simon said, guessing that Tom's life would be in danger pretty soon.

"Je suis nova ice, ill est gentil de vous encounter..."

"Je suis nouveau..."

"Je suis nova..."

"Not nova!" Simon stated. "Nouveau."

"Je suis nouveau."

"Good...now, Je suis nouveau ici, il est gentil de vous rencontrer."

"Je suis nova ice, ill est gentil de vous encounter..."

"No..." Simon took a deep breath, trying to be patient. "Je suis nouveau ici, il est

gentil de vous rencontrer."

"That's what I said!"

"No, it's not!" Simon argued back.

"Does it matter?"

"Yes! Because instead of saying 'I am new, nice to meet you,' you said 'I am nova ice, ill is nice you encounter!'..."

"Well, that doesn't make such sense."

"Exactly!"

"Hmm..." Matt said, deep in thought as he watched him.

"What?" Simon looked over at him.

"This might work better."

"What might?"

"What if Simon was a French teacher trying to teach Tom...but he doesn't catch on one bit."

"He'd be perfect for it." Simon commented.

"Okay, I'll be in my office working on a new script..." Matt stood up. "Sim, brush up on your French... And Tom... Don't learn any."

Danny got up and followed Matt as he headed for his office whilst Simon and Tom went off in another direction.

"Was there something you wanted me for?" Matt asked.

"Not really, just checking to make sure everything is okay."

"Yeah, I've got everything covered... Jeannie, Harriet and Sam are rehearsing the Spice Girls sketch... And Andy, Darius, and Lucy are working on a new James Bond one."

"Spice Girls sketch? Aren't there 5 Spice Girls?"

"I don't know..." Matt turned, smirking at Danny slightly. "You tell me."

"Shut up." He rolled his eyes. "If there's 5 in the band, why have you only got 3 in the sketch?"

"That's the funny part." Matt told him, walking into his office.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, it's hard to explain... you'll see it later."

"Okay..." Danny nodded, waiting a moment for Matt to take a seat at his desk. "And when I said I was checking to make sure everything was okay, I was talking about you."

"Yeah, I knew that."

"I know you knew and you avoiding the questioned concerns me." Danny started. "What happened on Friday with Nick?"

"Danny, look it's Monday morning, it's not even lunch time and I've already written one sketch, got one that's almost done and have the writers working on another..." Matt cut in. "I just need to work right now, okay?"

"You shouldn't keep things to yourself..."

"I'm not, you know everything that's happened... But it's not going to do me or the show any good over thinking it all." He claimed. "Nick's gone... I haven't heard from since Friday, he's probably back in New York right now."

"You sure you're okay with all this?"

"Yes, now if you'll excuse me I need to write a sketch to make Tom look like an idiot."

"Okay, I'll be in my office." Danny walked towards the door. "And I'm looking forward to the Spice Girl sketch."

"I bet you're a member of their fan club, aren't you?"

"I'm chairman." Danny replied, as he left the office.

Matt laughed and shook his head, hoping that things were now going to get back to normal.

_XxXxX_

"So, what do you think?"

Matt looked up at saw Harriet stood in the doorway with her hair in pigtails.

He couldn't help but smile. "Cute."

"Jeannie isn't happy about you giving her the role of Scary Spice."

"She'll get over it."

Harriet smiled slightly. "Either that or come after you."

"And that's why she's Scary Spice."

She laughed and shook her head. "So, how are you doing?"

"I'm okay, actually I seen to be getting a lot of ideas down today."

"Good." She nodded. "I uh, I tried phoning you over the weekend..."

"Yeah, I needed a bit of space..."

"I guessed that's why." She said softly. "I was just wondering if you were okay."

He shrugged a little. "I've just had a lot to think about."

"Did you see Nick?"

"No."

"Oh."

"Harri, there's a lot about my past that you don't know about..."

"It's okay, you don't need to explain..." She started.

"No, I just... I just want you to know that the reason I haven't told you is because I don't like talking about it..." He told her.

"Matthew, it's okay...I understand."

"I just don't want you to think that I don't trust you... Because I do..." He claimed. "Danny and you are probably the only ones I really trust..."

She reached across and squeezed his hand. "You can tell me as little as or as much as you like... But no matter what, I'll always be here for you."

He nodded. "Yeah and that's why I know I can trust you."

She smiled. "Well, I better get back downstairs... Make sure that Scary and Posh are okay."

"Okay, I'll be down later to see how it's going." He told her.

"Okay, see you then." She smiled at him once more before leaving.

_XxXxX_

"You weren't serious earlier when you said you were chairman of the Spice Girls' fan club, were you?" Matt asked Danny as they waited for the girls to turn up, so they could see how the sketch was coming along.

Danny just looked at him, as if he was crazy.

"Just checking." He held up his hands in defence. "Never know with your taste."

"Hey!"

"Mr Albie?" George from security called as he walked towards them.

"Yeah?"

"This was left for you at the front desk..." He handed him an envelope.

"What is it?"

"I don't know." He shrugged and walked off.

Matt sighed when he recognised Nick's handwriting on the front.

"From Nick?" Danny guessed.

"Looks like it."

"You not going to open it?" He asked when Matt just continued to stare at it.

He sighed. "I don't know if it's a good idea."

"Matt, it'll drive you crazy not knowing what it says." Danny told him. "Just read it and then you can forget all about it."

"I guess you're right." He nodded, tearing it open before he had a chance to change his mind.

Danny sat silently as Matt read it. He looked up when he saw the girls enter.

"Hey, you ready?" Harriet asked.

"Give us a minute..." Danny replied.

"Okay." She frowned a little, when Matt didn't look up from whatever he was reading.

After a few minutes, Matt shoved the letter in his pocket and looked up at them. "Okay, lets get started."

"What did it say?" Danny asked Matt quietly as the girls prepared.

"Just that he's going back to New York and that he's going to sort his life out." Matt told him.

"That's all?"

"He wants me to meet him."

"What?"

"Yeah, his flight isn't for a couple of hours... He said he'll be the down the road... But he'd understand if I didn't go."

"Why does he want to see you?"

"To say goodbye..." Matt shrugged. "He says he's going to stay away for good this time."

"Right..." Danny nodded. "You're not going to go are you?"

Matt hesitated slightly. "No..."

"Because if you go, he'll just drag you back in..." Danny told him.

Matt stayed silent, deep in thought as the girls started to read through the sketch. After 5 minutes, he couldn't concentrate and he knew he wouldn't be able to until he sorted things out with Nick once and for all.

"What you doing?" Danny asked when Matt stood up.

"I've got to go, Danny..." He told him. "I'm sorry, I won't be long."

"Matt?!" Danny called after him.

"I'm sorry." He replied before disappearing through the door.

"Damn it!"

"What's going on?" Harriet asked.

Danny glanced at her and sighed. "Don't worry about it."

_XxXxX_

Nick looked at Matt in surprise when he sat silently down next to him.

"Matt, you came..."

"Just say what you have to say so I can get back to work."

"Do you want a drink or anything."

"No..."

"Look, I'm sorry for what I said..." He started. "I shouldn't have spoken to you that... And I shouldn't have said all that stuff to Harriet."

"No, you shouldn't have."

"I really am, sorry... If I knew how much you cared for her... Then I wouldn't have dreamed of saying it." Nick claimed. "And that's all that matter... That you care about her... not her religion..."

Matt didn't reply, he just stayed quiet.

"I think Mom would have liked her, you know..." He continued but Matt still didn't speak. "I think she would want you to settle down with someone like Harriet."

Matt sighed. "I know all of this, Nick... And if that's all you have to say then I'd better be going."

"Matty, please..."

"Please, what?"

"Just one drink..."

Matt looked at him for moment, trying to decide what to do before re-taking his seat. "I'll just have an orange juice."

"Oh come on..."

"I've got work, Nick..."

"Okay, one orange juice and a beer." Nick said to the bartender.

"Nick, you've got a plane to catch... Maybe you should lay off the beers." Matt suggested, knowing that Nick was already a little drunk.

"I'll be fine..."

"If you say so." Matt muttered, deciding it wasn't his problem any more, once Nick was on the plane that was it. He'd be out of his life for good. Even if he did turn up again, Matt wouldn't have anything to do with him.

"Hi, I'm sorry... But are you Matt Albie?"

Matt turned around and looked at a girl he didn't recognise. "Uh, yeah I am."

"I'm sorry for interrupting but I'm just a huge fan of yours."

"Well, it's nice to meet you..." Matt replied, giving her small smile.

"I just think the show is great..." She continued. "I'm actually studying screen writing at college."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah." She smiled and held up a bit of paper. "Would you mind signing this?"

"Sure, no problem..." He replied. "Who shall I make it out to?"

"Sarah." She smiled.

Matt quickly signed the paper and handed it back to her. "Well, Sarah, it was nice meeting you."

"You too and thanks...You made my day."

"What the hell are you doing?" A guy grabbed hold of Sarah's arm.

"Hey, calm down..." Matt said, when he saw her wince.

"Get lost!" He glared at Matt. "And stay away from my girlfriend."

"I'm so sorry..." Sarah looked at Matt, pulling her arm away from her boyfriend before storming off.

"So, do you get girls falling at your feet everywhere you go?" Nick teased.

Matt rolled his eyes as he watched the couple arguing on the other side of the room before Sarah walked out.

"I really should get back..." Matt told Nick, turning his attention back to him.

"I appreciate you coming down here..." He replied as they both stood up.

"Don't worry about..." Matt said quietly as they made their way outside.

"I meant what I said Matt... You won't hear from me again..." He told him.

As they walked across the parking lot the guy from before, appeared in front of them.

"You were flirting with my girlfriend."

Matt rolled his eyes. "She just wanted an autograph."

"You think you're some big shot writer..."

"Why don't you just get lost?" Nick cut in.

"I wasn't talking to you!" The guy glared at him.

"Look, we don't want any trouble..." Matt started.

"You should have thought about that before you hit on my girlfriend!"

The next thing he knew, the guy punched him right in the face. He stumbled back slightly, in surprise and watched as Nick jumped in, attacking the guy.

He tried to break it up, shouting at them to stop, not wanting his brother to get hurt or into trouble, but he just couldn't get them apart. Every time he came close he'd get hit. He reached up and touched his lip as blood poured out. Then he saw the guy fall to the floor. He expected Nick to leave it and just walk away but he kept going, kicking the guy, as he lay defenceless on the floor.

"Nick! Stop! Nick!" Matt managed to drag him away but he was struggling to get free again. "Stop!"

He had never seen his brother like this before; it was as if he was in some kind of trance.

"Shit..." Matt muttered, looking down at the guy who was now unconscious, blood pouring out of a cut on his forehead.

"Matt, we... We've got to get out of here, Matt..." Nick stuttered, realising how far he had gone, but Matt didn't reply, instead he knelt down next the guy, trying to feel for a pulse. "Matt?!"

"Call for help." Matt replied.

"No, just leave him... We've got to go."

"Nick! He could die!"

"I'm not going back to jail..." Nick shook his head. "I can't."

"Nick!" Matt glared up at him. "We've got to help him!"

Suddenly there was a sound of police sirens, getting closer to them.

"Someone must have been watching... We've got to go, Matt... Let them deal with it."

"No!"

"I'm sorry..." He said, noticing that Matt had dropped his car keys when he had been hit.

"Nick?!" Matt exclaimed, watching as he picked up the keys and ran towards his car. "Nick! Get back here!"

Matt looked helplessly down at the guy; he didn't know what to do. Within a few seconds of Nick speeding off, a couple police cars turned up.

"Sir, you'll have to stand back..." One pulled Matt away.

"That's one of them!"

Matt turned around and saw the bartender leaving the bar, walking towards them.

"Did you see what happened, sir?" The officer asked him.

"Yes, I was the one who called you." The bartender said. "It was him and another guy, who attacked him."

"What?! No!" Matt claimed.

"Sir, can you tell me what happened?" The officer looked at him.

"He was the one that attacked us..." Matt stuttered, not knowing what to say, looking over at the guy as the paramedics were now treating him.

"I'm going to have to ask you to come with me..."

"Why?"

"I'm arresting you for..."

"No, what?! You can't arrest me!" Matt claimed, as the police officer snapped a pair of handcuffs on.

"You'll be able to explain your side later..."

"I didn't do anything!!"

_XxXxX_

"I thought you said that Matt decided not to have anything to do with Nick any more." Jordan asked Danny, as her and Harriet sat with him in his office.

"I did."

"So why has he gone to meet him?"

"No idea." He sighed. "He should have been back by now."

Just then a phone rang before anyone could say any more.

"Maybe that's him." Harriet said.

"Hello, Danny Tripp... Matt?! Where the hell are you?! What?! Are you okay? What happened? Okay, okay... I'll be right there!"

"What's going on?" Harriet asked in concerned when Danny hung up.

"I've got to go and pick Matt up..." He stood up.

"Where from?" Jordan frowned.

"Uh..."

"Danny?"

"Uh, the police station."

"What? Why?"

He sighed. "He's been arrested."

"What?!"

"Is he okay?" Harriet asked.

"I don't know... He said there was fight... Look, I've got to go."

"I'm coming to!" Harriet followed him.

"Yeah and me." Jordan added.

"Whatever, just come on!"

**TBC**

**Please review!!! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys, here's the next chapter! I hope you like it! Please review! **

**Enjoy!!! **

**A Monumental Reunion **

"What the hell were you thinking?!" Jack yelled, as he crashed through the doors of Studio 60.

Everyone in the room looked over at him, everyone except, Matt who was staring ahead.

"Jack, lets talk." Jordan sighed, walking towards him. They had arrived back at the Studio 15 minutes ago. Danny had tried to get Matt to go to his office, but instead, he just sat down silently in front of the stage. The room was full of cast members and crew; no one knew what to do.

"I want to know what the hell happened!" Jack demanded.

"There was a fight at a bar, Matt was some how involved."

"How?"

"We don't know the full facts. He's barely said a word since we've picked him up." Jordan explained. "The police said, a witness saw Matt and his brother arguing with this guy... Matt was the only one there when the police arrived."

"Has he been charged?"

"No, since no one actually saw the fight begin... We had to pay bail to get him out whilst they investigate, but I think the press have already been tipped off."

"This is just great!" Jack muttered, glancing at Matt. "Has he been checked over? He looks like he's gone five rounds with Mike Tyson."

Jordan shrugged. "He's refused to see a doctor."

"And the guy that the fight was with?"

"Not looking good."

Jack rubbed his eyes. "This can't end well."

"What do we do now?"

"We find out what the hell happened so we can get prepared."

"And how do we find out?"

"Matt?" Jack called, walking towards him, Jordan following him. "What happened?"

Matt stayed silent and didn't even look at him.

"Matt?! You better start talking now! We need to know what's coming our way!" Jack told him, but still got no reply.

"Look, just go and I'll deal with this." Danny sighed.

"How are you going to deal with it?" Jack turned to him. "Because you weren't meant to deal with this on Friday night!"

"Just back off!" Danny told him.

"Okay, we all need to calm down." Jordan stepped between the two of them. "This isn't helping anyone."

"And what do you suggest we do?" Jack asked her.

"Nothing."

"Nothing? Oh, great...Yes, that's exactly what we need to do..." Jack replied sarcastically.

"There is nothing we can do until the police have finished their investigation." Jordan stated. "So, until they arrest someone then we do nothing..."

"And the press?"

"No comment."

"That's not going to stop them from asking questions."

"Nothing is going to stop them from asking questions, Jack." Jordan told him. "And anyway, we can't comment on what we don't know."

"I'm sorry to interrupt..." Suzanne said, walking over to them with two men following her. "Matt... Detectives Archer and Kyle would like to talk to you."

"How is he?" Matt spoke for the first time, turning around to face them.

"Mr Albie, it might be a good idea to go somewhere private..." Archer started.

"How is he? He's going to be okay, right?" He asked again.

The detective sighed. "Jason Hillman died an hour ago."

Matt stared at him. "What?"

"He suffered from a massive head injury..."

"But... He... He can't have..." Matt stuttered. "No!"

"Matt, don't say anything." Jack ordered him. "We're getting a lawyer down here right now."

"Jack..." Jordan started but was caught off.

"No, Jordan! We're not just going to do nothing." Jack told her, pulling out his cell phone. "He could be facing a murder charge here! I'm getting a lawyer!"

"Sir, that won't be necessary." Archer informed him. "We haven't come down here to arrest Mr Albie... We've looked at CCTV footage of the parking lot, and it show that Jason Hillman attacked Mr Albie and a fight started between him and Nick Hunter."

"Hunter?" Jack frowned.

"His brother." Danny told him.

"Wait, so Matt isn't in trouble?" Jordan asked.

"No."

"Thank God." Jack sighed.

"But we need to speak to Mr Hunter as soon as possible..." Kyle stated, looking at Matt. "Do you know where he is?"

"He took off in my car." Matt whispered. "I don't... I don't know."

"Any place you could think he might be?"

Matt shook his head. "He... He shouldn't be driving... He... He's been drinking."

"We have officers looking out for him, right now." Archer told him. "We'll find him."

"He didn't mean it... He wouldn't do something like this... He... He was just trying to protect me... He's not a bad guy." Matt claimed.

"The fact that Mr Hillman had started the fight will be taken into account, but with your brother's previous conviction there is very high chance he will get charged with murder."

Matt turned away; swinging his arm out and knocking a laptop off a table.

"What previous convictions?" Jordan questioned, glancing at Matt quickly.

"We better get on with our investigation." Archer said, ignoring Jordan's question. "Please let us know if your brother gets in contact."

Matt nodded silent but didn't say anything.

"What previous convictions?" Jordan asked again, once they were gone.

"Jordan..." Danny sighed.

"Manslaughter." Matt muttered.

"What?"

"He was charged with manslaughter when he was 19." Matt told her. "He crashed into a car because he was drunk... People died... He was charged with manslaughter."

"Oh..." Jordan whispered, not sure how to reply.

"Matt let's go get a drink or something." Danny said, wanting to get Matt away from everyone.

"I don't want a drink."

"Well, lets go for a walk or something." Danny replied. "Come on..."

"He didn't mean it, Danny..." He whispered. "He wouldn't be like this if he hadn't been sent to jail all those years ago... No one would give him a chance with that on his record..."

"Matt, people died."

"He was just a kid though... He didn't mean it..."

"No, Matt... he wasn't a kid! He was 19! He killed four people!! Two of them were kids! Not him!" Danny snapped, raising his voice slightly. "He made the choice to get in that car! He knew he was drunk... He knew what he was doing, but he did it anyway! That family, they had no choice!"

Matt stared at him, slightly surprised by his outburst.

"You don't need him... You have a good life... You've worked hard to get this far... Don't throw it all away." Danny said, quietly. "Now, go up to your office."

Matt still didn't speak and after a few seconds, silently turned and went to his office.

"There is nothing anyone else can do... So Jack, Jordan... Go back to whatever you were doing before." Danny told them. "The rest of you... Get back to work."

He didn't wait to hear their replies and followed Matt up the stairs.

"He wouldn't stop." Matt said, as soon as Danny closed the door.

"What?"

"He was hitting him... And he wouldn't stop." He told him. "He was on the ground, not moving... And I tried to stop Nick, but... But he wouldn't listen... It... It was like he was a different person."

"He is a different person, Matt." Danny sighed. "I understand when you were kids, you looked up to him, but he's not the same guy any more... He's turned into someone that you should stay away from."

"He's my brother." Matt whispered.

"He stopped being your brother a long time ago." Danny shook his head slightly.

"If... If I would have stayed with him that night... Make sure he didn't drive."

"Matt..."

"Or... Or stopped him earlier..."

"You just said yourself that you tried and couldn't." Danny cut in. "Matt, none of this was your fault... You got to stop blaming yourself for his mistakes..."

"I need to find him."

"What?"

"I need to find him..." He repeated. "If he goes to the police... It will look better then if he ran away."

"And how are you going to find him?"

"I don't know… I'll drive around... Let me borrow your car."

"Matt, this really isn't a good idea."

"Danny, please..." He begged. "Please, he's my brother."

Danny sighed, knowing that Matt would go with or without his agreement.

"I'll come with you..."

"No, you need to stay here."

"Matt!"

"Danny, no."

"Fine but you better call me... Let me know where and what you're doing."

"Yeah, no problem." Matt nodded.

"Just be careful, okay?" Danny told him, handing over the keys.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Thanks."

Danny sighed and dropped on the couch as Matt left the room. He really didn't have a good feeling about this and was regretting letting him go alone, already.

_XxXxX_

Matt had been driving around for almost an hour and was about to give up when he spotted his car parked up on the sidewalk by the beach. Matt pulled up behind it and got out, walking towards the driver's side. He tapped on the window, startling Nick who was staring out into the water.

"Matt?" He rolled down the window.

"You have to talk to the police." He told him. "They're looking for you..."

Nick sighed and nodded slightly. "You're right."

"Okay, lets go."

"Now?"

"Yes, now! You need to do the right thing."

"Jump in."

Matt hesitated slightly before walking around to the passenger side of the car.

"Matty, I'm sorry..." He whispered, breaking the silence as they drove towards the police station. "For all of this... I'm sorry."

"Just do the right thing now and it'll be okay, I promise."

"I wish we could back to how things use to be..."

"Nick..."

"When it was just you, I and Mom."

Matt rubbed his eyes. "We can't..."

"Maybe... Maybe we can."

"What you talking about?" Matt looked at him.

"We can all be together again... Just the three of us... We can be a family."

"She's dead, Nick." Matt stated.

"Yeah."

Matt looked at him again. "You... You don't mean... That we should..."

"All it would take would to drive this car off a cliff into the ocean..."

"Have you gone crazy?!" Matt exclaimed.

"It's the only way out, Matt... They'll send me down for this!"

"Stop the car, Nick..."

"No."

"Nick!"

"I just want it to be how it was before." He replied, putting his foot down harder on the accelerator.

"Nick, please... Just stop the car." Matt begged, as he drove faster and faster.

"It'll be okay, Matty... I promise... I'm not going to leave you..." He told him. "It'll be okay."

"God, Nick... Please, slow down." Matt said, as his cell phone started to ring. He pulled it out of his pocket.

"Matt? Where the hell are you?! It's been over an hour."

"Danny..."

"What is it?" Danny asked, sensing the fear in his voice. "What's wrong."

"Danny, you've got to help me, please..." Matt begged.

"Where are you?"

"I'm in the car with Nick... He... He won't stop..."

"Put the phone away..." Nick grabbed it off him, throwing it onto the back seat. "I'm your brother, Matt… I am... Not him."

"Then, please! Just stop the car!"

"No." He shook his head, gripping the wheel tighter. "This is for the best."

"Nick!?" Matt screamed.

"Matt? Matt, can you hear me?" Danny said, he could hear both Matt and Nick, but couldn't make out what they were saying.

"Danny, what's is it?" Harriet asked, concerned.

"Nick's lost it." He told her then turned back to the phone. "Matt?!"

Jordan and Harriet looked at each other and then back at Danny.

The phone slowly fell from Danny's hand and his legs went out from under him, sending him down onto the couch.

"Danny?" Jordan moved towards him. "What happened?"

"There... There… Was a loud... God…"

"Danny?" Harriet whispered.

"I... I think Nick... He's just killed them both."

**TBC**

**Please review! **


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